Manually Updating M-Files

Note: By default, M-Files is automatically updated and manual update is not necessary. For more information, see Updating M-Files.

Before you start the update, do not uninstall previous versions of M-Files. The M-Files installer automatically detects the previous versions of the software and migrates the settings to the new version.

To update M-Files to a newer version:

  1. Start the M-Files installer for the new version.
  2. Select the Simple upgrade option.

When you select the Simple upgrade option, the setup installs the new version and transfers the M-Files settings and all the local data from the previous version to the new version. Finally, the setup uninstalls the previous version.

Installation preconditions

For information on the product versions that M-Files supports, refer to M-Files Lifecycle Policy.

All M-Files Server instances in a replication setup must have the same build number. For example, 12628 in 23.5.12628.4.

To verify compatibility with M-Files API and replication, refer to M-Files version compatibility regarding API and Replication.

If you have recently done the Verify and Repair (Quick) operation and issues were found, make sure that they are fixed before you upgrade the software.

Before you install the upgrade on the M-Files server, make sure that the conditions listed here are met.
  • Your server fulfills the requirements of the new version. See System Requirements and Technical Details.
  • Recent backups of the vaults are available and usable. The backups can be useful if an unexpected error occurs during the upgrade.
  • Recent backups of the master database are available.
    • It is recommended that the backups are on a disk that is separate from the main system.

If an error occurs, create a support case in M-Files Support Portal or contact your M-Files reseller immediately. Do not try to resolve the situation yourself.

Note: In some cases, you must disable your antivirus software for the duration of the upgrade process.

Installation order

You can upgrade the client computers and the server computer in any order. If you do not upgrade to the immediately subsequent M-Files version, make sure that the new version is compatible with the old version to avoid unnecessary interruptions. In these scenarios, upgrade first the server and then the client computers.
Note: It is possible that some new options and features of the newer version are not available until the server and the clients have been upgraded.

Upgrading offline vaults

The internal database structure of the vault changes during the upgrade. This is why also the vaults must be upgraded. All online vaults are upgraded automatically during a software upgrade. However, you must upgrade vaults in the offline state manually.

Service releases

Service releases are small software upgrades that share the same main version number (for example, 22.3). After the main version number comes the four- or five-digit version ID for the service release. For example, 23.3.12441.9 and 23.3.12441.10 are service releases for the version 23.3.12441.6.

Service releases do not usually contain new features. They are released if significant issues are detected in the released version or if compatibility with newer versions of other software requires changes to M-Files.

Service releases are compatible between each other and can be installed in any order.

Centralized deployment with Windows Group Policy

You can use the Windows Group Policy feature to automatically distribute M-Files to client computers. You can also use any other centralized deployment mechanism that you are familiar with. To customize the behavior of the M-Files setup program, refer to Installing M-Files Desktop, M-Files Server, and M-Files Admin with Advanced Options.